Youth Indicted in Slaying of Girl, 7, at Casino

LAS VEGAS — A grand jury returned an indictment Friday charging a California teenager with murder, kidnapping and sexual assault in the May 25 killing of a 7-year-old Los Angeles girl at a Nevada casino.

Jeremy Strohmeyer, 18, was ordered held without bail by District Judge Myron Leavitt.

Deputy Dist. Atty. William Koot said his office would meet Thursday to determine whether to seek the death penalty in the killing of Sherrice Iverson.

The indictment supersedes previous charges and means that a scheduled Aug. 28 preliminary hearing will be dropped.

Strohmeyer, of Long Beach, was arrested a few days after security videotapes revealed a man apparently pursuing Sherrice into a restroom from an arcade in the Primadonna resort on the California-Nevada border.

Strohmeyer’s attorneys fought his extradition to Nevada, but he ultimately was ordered to return. He then appeared before Justice of the Peace Janet Smith in Goodsprings, Nev.

Smith has issued a gag order in the case.

Strohmeyer attorney Richard Wright has said he plans to challenge the legality of statements police obtained from Strohmeyer.

Before Sherrice’s killing, which occurred about 4 a.m., the unsupervised youngster was stopped three times by Primadonna security guards and released to the custody of her father, Leroy, or her 14-year-old brother. The father had reportedly been gambling in the casino during the night.

Strohmeyer’s friend, David Cash, is under subpoena in the case. Police say the 18-year-old from La Palma witnessed part of the attack. He was not charged.